When I was a little girl, I loved being tomboyish. I played football and baseball. I never played with dolls or Barbies. I hated the color pink, and I found hanging out with girls was gross. I loved playing with action figures and superheroes. When I was in fifth grade, I became more curious about why I was so tomboyish.

I decided to search it up on Google. It made me open my eyes. I discovered terminology such as lesbians, homosexuals, pansexual, transgender, and queer. I looked into it more and I thought: I like girls. I’m a lesbian. Three years later I see how I was wrong. In the summer of my 6th grade year I came out to my mom as transgender. I was super embarrassed to admit it. It’s tough coming out to people whom you admire.

My dad and I looked online, and we found a name fitting for me. Viktor was how we wanted to spell it because I wanted it to be unique. I thought: this is who I am.

Now my mom and I weren’t very close when I was growing up. I had fallen into a deep depression when I was 8. I hated myself . I was suicidal, but I kept finding ways to stay on the path that was the right choice.

Then when I was 12, my mom came out to me as bisexual at the same time as my sister. I felt like I became mature overnight. I felt like I had to be a big brother to everybody; that didn’t turn out well because some people held a grudge against me for a reason that I didn’t know about. But now I’m 13, and I’m talking to my parents about taking hormones to change my body to the way I want to be. I’m making this decision with the help of my family and friends. Sometimes people get confused sometimes and question themselves.

I’m glad I didn’t go through with the hormone therapy because I’ve figured myself out. I’m a young, independent woman who believes in gender identity equality and sexuality equality because all lives matter to me. I'm proud to be who I am.

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